Montréal based melodic death metallers Kataklysm will unleash their new studio album Meditations on June 1st via Nuclear Blast Records. Today, frontman Maurizio Iacono discusses his vocal evolution. Watch the video below.

Says Maurizio" "In 20 years, I would say that the last 10 years I've been comfortable with it. The last five years I've mastered it to the point where I know what I'm doing exactly. I think the last three records I've done have been really on point. That all came by working hard on the way I portray my breathing techniques and the way I push out the screams and everything, I'm much more comfortable and much more calm than before, I don't feel like I have to prove something to people. I am who I am now, you either like it or you don't."

In celebration of the new album's release, the band have announced they will be playing four exclusive US dates before heading to Europe. Attendees of the shows will receive a copy of Meditations and bonus live DVD.

Following the release on June 1st, the band will play June 2nd at St. Vitus in Brooklyn, June 3rd at Northside Yacht Club in Cincinnati, June 4th at Reggies in Chicago and the final show will be at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood on June 7th. Support for the release shows will be none other than Jungle Rot, who will play the first thee shows, and Exmortus, who will play the show at the Whisky A Go Go.

Maurizio Iacono comments, “Meditations is coming - a work of art. To celebrate, we decided to do four select release party shows across the states. We encourage everyone to come party! Every attendee will receive a copy our new album, “Meditations” and bonus live DVD. Support the cause of metal and see ya soon \m/“

Tickets for the shows are on sale here.

Produced by the band's own guitarist J-F Dagenais and drummer Oli Beaudoin, the new album was mixed by Jay Ruston (Anthrax, Stone Sour). Mastering duties were handled by Paul Logus (Pantera).

The Meditations cover artwork, which can be seen below, was created by Ocvlta Designs by Surtsey, who also crafted the artwork for Kataklysm's previous record, Of Ghosts And Gods.

Maurizio commented, "This is a very personal album to me with old wounds being revisited - I felt a big urge to pour my soul into this release. The boys and I were isolated under the same roof during the writing process, just like we did in the early days...with no worries except having fun, being honest and delivering a serious album that represents us today but respects our past. Our new story is coming and we are eager to share it with you!"

Meditations tracklisting:

"Guillotine"
"Outsider"
"The Last Breath I'll Take Is Yours"
"Narcissist"
"Born To Kill And Destined To Die"
"In Limbic Resonance"
"And Then I Saw Blood"
"What Doesn't Break Doesn't Heal"
"Bend The Arc, Cut The Cord"
"Achilles Heel"

"Narcissist" video:

"Guillotine" playthrough video:

"Guillotine" lyric video:

Trailers:

Kataklysm have announced that they will be teaming up with Swedish death metal legends Hypocrisy for a European co-headline tour.

The tour's special name traces back to Nuclear Blast's popular sampler series and promises nothing but evenings of moshpits and endless devastation. Don't miss out on this outstanding tour and secure your tickets now.

Maurizio Iacono states: "It's been in talks for over two years and finally both Kataklysm and our brothers in Hypocrisy can make the schedule work to join forces once more. It's been almost 15 years since we toured together and the last time we did the tours became instant classics. It‘s that time again folks... Kataklysm & Hypocrisy team up once more for a world tour beginning with Europe this fall. To make things even greater our record label Nuclear Blast has come on board and baptized the tour Death... Is Just The Beginning, a homage to the old classic compilations that made so many fans discover both bands back in the day. This will mark the return of this classic compilation with this tour and maybe give other artists the chance to get discovered like we did. DO NOT MISS THIS TOUR, YOU ONLY GET ONE CHANCE!"

Hypocrisy's Peter Tägtgren adds: "I hope that you are just as excited as we are, because we are very happy to announce that we are finally warming up the Hypocrisy engine again and that we will be back on the road in fall! We will be touring Europe together with our friends in Kataklysm! The tour will be an overview of the chaos and confusion created by Hypocrisy over the years. See you out there!"

Tour dates:

October
18 - Wiesbaden, Germany - Schlachthof
19 - Stuttgart, Germany - LKA Longhorn
20 - Munich, Germany - Backstage
23 - Budapest, Hungary - Barba Negra
24 - Vienna, Austria - Arena
25 - Wrocław, Poland - Zaklęte Rewiry
26 - Geiselwind, Germany - MusicHall
27 - Milan, Italy - Live Music Club
28 - Pratteln, Switzerland - Z7
29 - Lyon, France - Ninkasi Kao
31 - Madrid, Spain - Sala Mon

November
1 - Barcelona, Spain - Razzmatazz 2
2 - Limoges, France - CC John Lennon
3 - Paris, France - La Machine du Moulin Rouge
4 - Antwerp, Belgium - Trix
5 - Hamburg, Germany - Docks
6 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Trädgår'n
7 - Stockholm, Sweden - Fryshuset
9 - Helsinki, Finland - The Circus
10 - Tampere, Finland - Pakkahuone
12 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Pumpehuset
13 - Leeuwarden, Netherlands - Neushoorn
14 - Berlin, Germany - Kesselhaus
15 - Dresden, Germany - Eventwerk
16 - Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle 2
17 - Leipzig, Germany - Hellraiser

More Kataklysm live dates:

June
14-16 - Gräfenhainichen, Germany - With Full Force
21 - Dessel, Belgium - Graspop Metal Meeting
22 - St. Goarshausen, Germany - Rockfels
23 - Clisson, France - Hellfest

July
6 - Bucarest, Romania - Metalhead Meeting
7 - Barcelona, Spain - Rockfest Barcelona
21 - Bertingen, Germany - R.U.D.E
25 - Tolmin, Slovenia - Metaldays

August
16 - Dinkelsbühl, Germany - Summer Breeze
17 - Moravsky Krumlov, Czech Republic - Rock Heard Festival
18 - Essen, Germany - Turock OA

Kataklysm is:

Maurizio Iacono - Vocals
Jean-Francois Dagenais - Guitar
Stephane Barbe - Bass
Oli Beaudoin - Drums